Bill Clinton no fan of ‘crazy’ moves on Ukraine

Former President Bill Clinton on Monday jabbed Russian President Vladimir Putin for treating Ukraine as a “piece on the international chessboard” without concern for its people, and added that pushing the country toward a split was a “crazy,” outdated maneuver.

Clinton spoke during a conference in Wilmington, Del., titled “Opportunity: Africa,” and he spent much of his address highlighting his work on the continent, with a nod to the Obama administration’s efforts toward combating AIDS. But he also devoted some time to the crisis involving Russia and Ukraine, among other foreign conflicts.

Ukrainians want to be a “bridge” between the East and the West, Clinton said. He pointed favorably to dissidents who “stormed” the palace of the country’s ousted president and “didn’t steal… didn’t deface anything” but instead opened it up to showcase the “excess” of the leadership.

In an apparent swipe at the Russians, Clinton said the Ukrainians were being told, “If you choose the wrong side, we’re gonna split you up.”

“This is a crazy way to approach the 21st century,” he said. “The only thing that works is creative cooperation.”

Monday’s gathering was spearheaded by the Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware. Clinton, who also spoke at length about the late South African leader Nelson Mandela, used his appearance there to praise President Barack Obama’s continued work on the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

In doing so, the former president also nodded to his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has said she will make a decision this year about whether to run for the White House in 2016.

“One of the things I’m proudest of in President Obama’s legacy, that Hillary shared in because PEPFAR is under the State Department” is that by the end of Obama’s first term, they had tripled the number of people receiving treatment for AIDS, he said.

PEPFAR started under President George W. Bush, Obama’s Republican predecessor, and Clinton noted that “there’s a surprising amount of bipartisan interest in Africa.”

He lauded non-governmental organizations in particular for their efforts to stop the spread of AIDS as well as their willingness to take risks.

“As citizens, we should want politicians to try things…[and be willing to say], ‘That didn’t work, we’re going to do something else,’” Clinton said to applause.